Project MARS/AmeriCorps collects “Great Stories” from its members in which they reflect on their experiences mentoring in the classroom and the progress they see in students. This month’s story was written toward the end of the school year by Riley Johnson.
Glass beakers knocked over, spilling solutions of water, vinegar, and baking soda across the tabletops. The half-heartedly scribbled-on worksheets numbered with (mostly ignored) instructions were soaked.
The smell clung to the insides of my nostrils. Heavy with the musty odor that surfaces only after eighth-graders come in from recess in the hot sun, it mixed with hints of patchouli clawing through the deodorizing spray the students’ science teacher doused around her desk.
Students in groups yowled at each other over the din, to joke, to insult, and to yell for yelling’s sake. As I shut the classroom door behind me, the teacher turned to me with wide eyes.
“This is why I don’t like experiment days,” she said, gesturing to the chaos. I felt myself shrug. That’s hanging around middle schoolers, I guess.
Before joining at my service site, I was a bit apprehensive serving middle schoolers. I dreaded the attitude, the apathy, and the unbridled funk that I was about to walk into.
Some of the things I dreaded definitely did come to fruition. But I was also surprised by the laughter I shared with the students day in and day out. I was delighted by their engagement with their schoolwork and their community. They shocked me with their sensitivity towards each other and the individual needs of their peers (alright, maybe I am overstating that last point.)
Middle schoolers definitely are willful. Many times I sat outside with students and let them vent after their teacher sent them out to “cool off’’ after a heated moment in the classroom. Their sense of fairness is keener than anything.
Serving with middle schoolers has been a challenge. They are often chaotic and frustrating to be around. But I have to say, they have made my service year unforgettable. And I am honored to have spent my time this year watching them all grow as students.
